Destiny
by Servo Novum
Summary: He wasn't destined to be a shinobi. He wasn't destined to be a killer. He wasn't destined to be a monster.


He wasn't destined to be a killer.

He wasn't destined to be a shinobi.

He wasn't destined to be a monster.

Young and impressionable, Uchiha Sasuke had much on his mind to worry about.

Like his grades at the academy; like earning his Father's approval. Like making sure he got home on time; like making sure he helped his Mother prepare dinner. Like making sure that Big Brother didn't forget about all the things he promised him.

Things were getting worse. He wasn't a shinobi, he wasn't a killer, he was a _boy_… he didn't know what was going on.

The meetings behind closed doors.

The stockpiling of weapons in closets and underneath loose floorboards.

The subtle murmurs in the ranks of the police force.

He didn't know.

He wasn't destined to be a killer.

He wasn't destined to be a shinobi.

Not until that fateful night.

Not until he walked down the main street of his clan's compound… not until he noticed a limp body laying in the middle of the road…

Not until the moon turned red and the streets ran with blood.

* * *

He wasn't destined to leave the village.

He wasn't destined to be a killer.

He wasn't destined to destroy the only friendship he'd ever had.

Young and tortured, Uchiha Sasuke had much on his mind to worry about.

Like getting stronger. Like training. Like ensuring that he and his team made it through each and every mission safely. Like making sure that they got through the Chunin Exams unscathed. Like making sure that no one knew of his curse mark, lest they take away his chance to prove himself. Like… like…

Things were getting worse. He was a shinobi, but he wasn't a killer. He wasn't a boy anymore, but he wasn't a man. He didn't know what was going on.

He didn't know why his brother and that man, both draped in cloaks dotted with red clouds, were after his friend.

He didn't know why he was so weak.

He didn't know that there was more to life than vengeance, hatred, anger.

He didn't know.

Yet when his most powerful technique was blocked as easily as a fly being swatted out of the air… yet when his arm was broken with a twist of Big Brother's wrist…

He wasn't destined to leave the village.

He wasn't destined to be a killer.

Not until he stared into those red eyes and watched the world transform into those same blood-soaked streets, not until he saw bodies upon bodies pile up; again and again, again and again.

Not until the world seemed to be nothing but death, and agony, and despair. Not until the sounds of Mother choking to death in her own blood seemed to be the only thing he could hear, or remember.

Not until the sight of Big Brother's eyes made him sick to his stomach with rage.

* * *

He wasn't destined to try to kill his best friend.

The chirping of a thousand birds filled the air. Naruto was limp—he was held by the throat, Sasuke staring at him, expressionless.

He hesitated.

He wasn't destined to try to kill his best friend.

Not until he remembered the screams.

Not until he remembered the look in his mother's eyes as life drained from them.

Not until he remembered waking up as a young boy, seven years of age. With no family. With no home. With nothing but a burning pit of rage inside of him.

Not until he saw those red eyes, mocking him. You're not strong enough, you're weak, you're weak, you're weak-

* * *

He wasn't destined to kill his brother.

He wasn't destined to kill his brother.

He wasn't destined to kill his brother.

No.

_He was._

"Sorry, Sasuke… this is it."

* * *

He was destined to destroy the village.

He was destined to crush everything that the Will of Fire stood for beneath his boot.

He was destined to kill Uzumaki Naruto.

Blood dripped from his eyes. He was mad, yet madness had never dulled a man's fighting ability.

Danzo never stood a chance.

"One down, brother."

He was destined to destroy the village.

He was destined to kill Uzumaki Naruto.

* * *

Maybe, Sasuke, maybe we could have been different. Maybe our roles could have reversed.

No, Naruto.

I was destined to destroy the village.

I was destined to kill you.

And now I will.

* * *

I was destined to bring peace to this earth.

I was destined to ensure my brother did not die in vain.

I was destined to kill the only person who I could call my friend.

Uchiha Obito, Uchiha Madara, pathetic men who had let their ambition get the better of them. They were mere obstacles.

Kaguya. A worthy opponent, but dealt with nonetheless.

There was only one person who stood in my way.

* * *

He was destined to kill Uzumaki Naruto.

He was destined to kill Uzumaki Naruto.

He woke up.

His arm was missing; so was Naruto's.

For the first time in what felt like forever, his mind was clear.

"... I lost."

No.

He wasn't.

* * *

She wasn't destined to be just like me.

She wasn't destined to be a monster.

She wasn't destined to be a killer.

I stayed away. I didn't want her to be…

… me.

* * *

I woke up.

Curled against me was her; my daughter.

Standing before us, smiling, taking a picture, was my wife.

In the foreground, I could see him. Naruto. Smiling and laughing with his own family.

I couldn't help but smile as well, though it was barely noticeable.

I was destined to be a shinobi, a killer, a monster.

But destiny had a funny way of working out in the end.

* * *

**Thank you for reading.**


End file.
